"What We Leave Behind, That's Our Legacy"

"What We Leave Behind, That's Our Legacy"
WLTX-TV Columbia

(Lexington County) – Two years have passed since White Knoll High School lost one of their own to the war in Iraq. Now school is working to have the new athletics field house named in honor of Lance Corporal Josh Torrence. The project won’t be cheap, but it’s a mission they’ll see through.

Year after year, teams come and go from White Knoll High School.

“We want to make sure, to ensure that his memory and his legacy will never die,� said Head Football Coach Mark Cagle.

Coach Cagle tries to remind his players of one former offensive lineman who is not forgotten.

“He’d bust his tail and work so hard, and yet, be coming back with a smile and wanting more,� Cagle said.

The way 20-year-old Josh Torrence led has set an example on the school’s field, and in its halls. The offensive lineman was a part of the school’s varsity football team. The marine was killed in March 2005, in Fallujah.

‘It was 100 percent or nothing and football was the same way. When he got into the marines, it was all or nothing,� said Vernon Torrence, Josh’s father.

Vernon knows his 20-year-old son died giving his all: as an honorable marine.

And this high school not only remembers Lance Corporal Torrence, but also plans to memorialize him.

Construction is underway outside White Knoll High School. A school bond will pay for the new, multi-million dollar sports complex, including the athletics field house.

“It was one of those things where, what if?� Vernon said.

What if the new field house could be named for Josh?

“Of course, it'd be an honor, and a wonderful respect,� Vernon said.

What if they formed a committee to raise enough money to pay for it?

“We got to raise $150,000 and a lot of people say that's a lot of money and it is. But if people will catch hold,� said Coach Cagle, imagining the possibilities.

But in order for the $600,000 field house to be personalized with Josh’s name, the school will have to pay for a forth of the cost, or $150,000.

Right now, the Josh Torrence Field House committee has only raised $16,000. While the sports complex will be complete by this coming football season, the school is hoping to finish the memorial by October, with a dedication planned for November.

“You know, all of us, at some point, are going to go on to the hereafter. But what we leave behind, that’s our legacy,� Coach Cagle said.

Ellie